As its name indicate, Virtual physics allows you to simulate certain physical phenomena on your computer in such a way that students – and general users – can actually see what happens in some natural conditions that are not easy to see in real life. This awesome application consists in a collection of different sub-applications, each one simulating a specific phenomenon. Thirteen modules are included.
This application is mainly oriented to schools and colleges to be used in interactive laboratories, which can be running for a very low cost in comparison with their real experimental counterparts. This doesn’t mean that Virtual Physics can’t be used for individual studies and experiments at home.
Among the phenomena you can simulate in Virtual Physics that you could never see either in nature or in the school laboratory, we can mention: celestial bodies moving in their orbits, or the motion of molecules in a gas.
The program offers two different license types: Standard and Professional. The difference between them is the number of computers in which the program will be used. Standard is for individual computer use, and Professional to be used on a network. Beside the versions mentioned there is a trial version to get to know the program before buying. This trial edition is only for demonstration since you cannot set a different experiment from those included.
Let’s know a few things about the modules:
- Diffraction: With this module you can observe diffraction. It occurs when light bends around an obstacle or, as in our experiment, passes through a slit.
- Dynamics: With this module you can investigate the motion of a block sliding down an inclined plane as a result of Earth's gravitational force.
- Electrostatics: With this module you can see what the electric field generated by a set of static charges looks like.
- Gravity: With this module you can investigate gravitational interactions between celestial bodies.
- Kepler Laws: With this module you can investigate the motions of planets and other celestial bodies in our Solar System.
- Kinematics: Kinematics is the part of physics devoted to describing the motions of physical bodies. Position, velocity and acceleration are among the words used to describe this motion.
- Kirchhoff Laws: This module can help you in developing intuitions about basic notions that describe electric current as well as in understanding properties of simple electric circuits.
- Optics: With this module, you can investigate two very common physical phenomena we are all familiar with - reflection and refraction.
- Oscillations: With this module you can investigate the oscillations of a mass on a spring or a mathematical pendulum.
- Projectiles: With this simple module, you can follow trajectories of projectiles and see how they change when the launch parameters vary.
- Thermodynamics: With this module you can observe the motions and interactions of gas particles. It can help you in understanding the concept of temperature.
- Vectors: This module can help you in understanding the operations of adding and subtracting vectors.
- Waves: With this module, you can investigate waves and their interference patterns.
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